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The AppAdvice tech week in review: A new Apple iPhone is set to launch

March 6-12, 2016
Apple Announces
March 13, 2016

As expected, Apple announced that its next media event is being held on Monday, March 21. Here’s a look back at some of the important news from the week that was.

Top news stories

Top news stories
Official invitation to next Apple event

Official invitation to next Apple event

A spring thaw

For the first time in history, Apple is prepping to announce a new iPhone and iPad at a springtime event. Both the “iPhone SE” and “9.7-inch iPad Pro” should launch on March 21.

For more on the event see:

President Obama wants our iPhones unlocked

At South by Southwest Interactive, President Obama weighed in on the growing battle between Apple and the FBI over mobile device encryption.

President Obama

President Obama

Obama warned against technology companies taking an “absolutist view” on encryption, and he encouraged Apple not to wait for Congress to pass a new law before creating an iOS backdoor.

For now, Apple isn’t budging. There is a federal court hearing in the case on March 22.

See also:

On the App Store

EA announces next Plants vs. Zombies game
On the App Store

The epic battle between plants and zombies is continuing. EA announced that a brand new game, Plants vs. Zombies Heroes, will arrive on the App Store worldwide soon. It’s already been soft-launched in New Zealand.

Described as a collectible card game, similarities to the popular Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft are obvious. And in an interview with VentureBeat, EA’s Brian Lindley said the title was an inspiration:

“We took inspiration from other CCGs out there, and some of the team worked on Magic: The Gathering in the past,” Lindley said. “Hearthstone is both inspiration and competition. They took the genre in a good direction.”

The game will feature more than 300 different characters from the universe. A new offering will be Super Hero Plants and Zombies. For example, The Green Shadow is a hero that can take out zombies with her precision blast. And on the flip side, the Zombie Imp Hero can create multiple clones during battle.

New apps and games

Free
Voodoo Doll of My Ex -- The Best Boyfriend Girlfriend Free Hex Revenge Maker
Voodoo Doll of My Ex -- The Best Boyfriend Girlfriend Free Hex Revenge Maker
Midnight Illusions Ltd.
$3.99
Disney Build It: Frozen
Disney Build It: Frozen
Disney Publishing Worldwide Applications
Free
Cola Messenger
Cola Messenger
Cola, Incorporated

Games in review

Each week, Christine Chan reviews new App Store titles
Games in review
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viki-338x600
dreammachine-4-338x600

I highly recommend giving Ulysses Mobile a try if you haven’t already. It’s a powerful and comprehensive text editor that is flexible enough to work with you, for the most part.

- Christine Chan

Christine's favorites this week

$2.99
Telepaint
Telepaint
Acid Nerve Limited
$0.99
Dream Machine : The Game
Dream Machine : The Game
GameDigits Ltd
Free
Pilots of the Dawn
Pilots of the Dawn
Sapeli Studio Oy
$1.99
Dirac
Dirac
Mediocre AB
$19.99
Ulysses Mobile
Ulysses Mobile
The Soulmen GbR
$1.99
Viki · A Nice Reader for Wikipedia
Viki · A Nice Reader for Wikipedia
Raureif GmbH
$4.99
Doo - Get Things Done
Doo - Get Things Done
Ciarlo Software, LLC

Accessory news

Withings Home camera joins with IFTTT
Accessory news

The interesting Withings Home camera is getting even more useful thanks to a new partnership with IFTTT.

If you’re not familiar with IFTTT, also known as “If This, Then That,” you should be. It can be used to create a bridge between the growing number of smart home products and services.

Here are a few examples:

Reinforce privacy: Turn off Withings Home automatically when I’m home, turn it back on when I’m away using geolocation from my phone.

Make security seamless: When I lock my door with my SmartThings door lock, my Withings Home will turn on. When there is a motion or noise alert, my Philips Hue lights will blink.

Improve home health: When bad air quality is detected, it will turn on my WeMo air purifier automatically or change the color of my Philips Hue light to red.

What will be making news next week? Stay with AppAdvice to find out.

Jeff ByrnesAldrin CalimlimBrent Dirks, and Sandy Stachowiak contributed to this report.